Once again, I was at the edge of my seat all throughout Episode 11 of ACCA: 13-ku Kansatsu-ka! Then, when it ended, I was just left trying to comprehend everything that happened. It’s a good thing, actually, because I believe it’s highly important for the penultimate episode of a show to be totally thrilling!

Japanese Original Episode Title: フラワウの花は悪意の香り

Plot

Things definitely got more crucial, not only for Jean, but for the whole nation of Dōwā! With his visit to Furawau, the last place he was assigned to audit, he was offered the last cigarette symbolizing the loyalty of the districts, from the family behind the whole coup d’état no less! An unexpected incident involving the assassins sent by the First Princess finally made Jean join in on the coup! I know he’s got good motives on why he now wants to be king, but the people around him don’t, especially Lillium’s family! ACCA’s centennial ceremony is nearing, so how will everything unfold?

Episode Highlights

The assassination attempt: Nino!! I totally screamed for him when he suddenly got shot by those assassins! When it happened, I wondered why he didn’t just confront the assassins himself, but then he told Jean that he was ordered not to harm anyone. Here I thought he protected Jean because he’s his best friend, but he actually also did so because it’s his job. That means he followed it at the risk of his life just to be praised by his supervisor! I do hope that what Jean said got through to him at least, that he doesn’t exist for the Dōwā family. Plus, whoever his supervisor is, please give Nino a break! Let him be free already!

Jean’s resolve: I’m guessing Jean was just going with the flow at first, trying to figure out what the districts want from him and discovering who the mastermind behind the coup d’état plot was. He didn’t immediately accept Furawau’s cigarette, so he probably never really had any intention to join them. But since the Dōwā family wanted him and his sister killed, also getting Nino hurt in the process, he perhaps already wanted to put a stop to them. To be honest, it’s scaring me a bit for some reason. He hasn’t told anyone else except Lillium that he’s pushing through with the plan to put him on the throne. And Lillium is that last person he’d want to be his confidante, as far as were concerned at least.

Prince Schwan’s motives: I’m assuming that Jean agreed to overthrow Schwan as the next king because he thinks his cousin was the one who wanted him killed. And he’s somehow right, because it looked like Schwan really knew his auntie would want his cousins killed, thereby getting rid of his competition for the throne. Seems like this idiot prince is more cunning than we thought. Aside from that however, it’s no wonder the people don’t like him. He’s only concerned with being the king, and he failed to realize being one means caring for your citizens and the nation’s affairs. I can’t wait until someone teaches him a lesson, or that he’ll learn it by himself soon.

A Puppet King: Now that we know Lillium’s true nature, we could totally see it coming a mile away that his family would make Jean a puppet king, controlling him from the shadows. However, only a few people in the story know this! Most of them still see the Chief Officer as a charismatic and loyal person, especially Jean! I wish that he’s actually just going with it and that deep inside he knows what the family of Furawau plans to do with him! It’s too good to be true. All I know is that, when the brothers finally have Jean where they want him and he gets to know the truth, he’ll probably be as frustrated as Grossular now, who completely fell for his co-workers plan. Well, I say frustrated, but he actually looks calmer that I expected! Is he hiding his feelings like usual? Or has he been planning something with Mauve all this time? Might be a long shot too, but it’s worth hoping, right?

Themes & Trivia

Unity: Seemed like the whole Inspection Department was on board with the whole coup d’état thing, which is good since it’s their very own Vice-Chairman they’re trying to put on the throne. It’s not just them, too, but the whole of ACCA is linking arms to save their beloved organization, which they believe will give peace to the people. On the other hand, while they’re putting up a face that they want the same thing, the Lillium family actually just wants everything for themselves, and for their district.

Comments

Honestly, I had a bit of a hard time thinking of the theme that linked everything that happened in this episode. Because it was all over the place, somewhat. It’s not like I didn’t enjoy it, though – I was screaming inside a lot, especially with what happened to Nino. Jean’s decision made me quite worried too. Well, it is the last episode next week, so maybe they pushed to have all the final plot pieces together before the big finale. Here’s to hoping that the conclusion won’t be as messy as this one! May everything fall neatly into place and be resolved properly, giving us an ending that we’ll never forget, in a good way!

Towards the future of the nation

Who’s as excited as I am for next week? We’ll finally see these loose ends tied as the show draws to a close, which is the sad part! But all good things have to end, and we’ll only be satisfied once we see that in the last episode of this super intriguing and captivating show! If you have any theories of how it’ll go, or some more things you noticed that could lead us to a discovery, share it below!

Don’t forget to read our other anime reviews for Winter 2017, too! And if you are preparing for the next season, this new MANGA.TOKYO hashtag and pages list might come in handy: